Staccato Heartbeat
by megicci
Summary: I'm trying at it again! This time, Kyou segments will be distributed in side-chapters. Ahri wants to be human. It's the only goal she's wanted to reach for years. But her progress has been minimal, and the League of Legends promises no guarantee. What does it mean to have a human soul - a human heart?


**Staccato Heartbeat**

**Prologue: **_Melody Without a Harmony_

Ahri never considered herself to be lacking in company. No matter where she went or what she did, she would find someone or something attracted to her. At no point in time was she ever alone except by choice. Yet, at this moment, having just concluded her Judgment for entry into the League of Legends, she felt lonely, as if something was missing from her very being. Her talents as a gumiho meant she was never short a warm body. And maybe that was where the fault was.

She had not yet become human. Even if her body moved closer to that goal with each passing day, her heart was still that of a beast. Within a human society, one with complex relations of give-and-take and seemingly meaningless social rituals, she had no place, didn't belong. Her existence wasn't being validated when she tore the souls from her partners in those nights of passion, and she could never truly validate a human existence.

However, her purpose in coming here to the Institute of War was to remedy that. She needed only press on through any sort of inflicted mental drain toward her goal. Perhaps the trial pushed onto her by the Summoners was meant to remind her of that. Ahri would stay focused, do her duty in the League, and in return, receive the means to find her humanity.

The lobby just outside the Proving Grounds for processing of new entries was barren, except for one tired gumiho. She stared ahead, dazed, drained, contemplating the meaning of her entry and of her very existence. At the moment, due to an incident in some far-off mining region, the Institute was short-staffed, meaning a long and painful wait time for any new Champions. In order to cope with the extreme boredom, the new Champions would withdraw into themselves, much as Ahri was doing. She was only drawn out of her trance by an increasingly loud ringing.

Ahri realized the buzzer signaling that an attendant was available had rung four times now. The attendant was worked up over the fact that his charge wasn't moving, and, bristling with impatience, moved to ring the buzzer. Ahri jolted to a standing position, at the very least mildly annoyed by the obnoxious buzzing by now. She proceeded to stride to the window with all due urgency, because if she heard that damn ring-buzz a fifth time she swore she would break something.

"Hello," Ahri murmured to the man at the window. He was visibly flustered by Ahri's manner of carrying herself, certain parts threatening to throw themselves out of her admittedly skimpy clothing. Not to mention that sultry voice!

"Uh, hi," he stammered. "I'm jus-just a rookie, but I-I hope I can help."

This guy was going to be a pain to deal with if she had to speak with him much longer. Ahri really did not want to deal in essence theft at the moment. "It's just routine paperwork, right? What do I need to fill out?"

The attendant looked down, a bit _let_ down as well. "Well, you already filled most of it out upon application, and the rest was done in the Proving Grounds, so I guess all that's left is a briefing and some paperwork acknowledging you've gotten the briefing." He said that as if he was even qualified to tell Ahri what exactly happened at the Institute.

"Go ahead, tell me your secrets," Ahri said, half-giggling at the thought of this idiot being able to speak to her comprehensively.

"Okay, well, since you already know the rules of the Fields and your first Summoner will tell you more about them, I just need to talk to you about your circumstances. Namely, your reward for participating in the League and garnering influence. First off, you no longer need to steal essence to survive, as long as you participate in matches regularly. You will get as much simulated essence as you need on the Fields from your opponents."

Ahri nodded in understanding. The Summoners _were_ renowned for being able to perform miracles, and even if they had mucked around with her using an enchantment, it was well worth gaining a human soul.

And a human heart.

"Second, any influence you gain may be contributed toward research efforts regarding synthesizing enough pure essence to not only sustain you, but to bring you closer to being human. While your condition is largely undocumented, it is not unheard of, and enough knowledge of your thaumatic makeup should be garnered from your matches in the Fields. Finally, because your biology has been slightly altered by the enchantment, you'll need to eat actual food."

It was surprising that the rookie Summoner managed to speak for so long without stuttering. The kid was probably extremely excited at being able to perform an important job and recite what he'd learned.

"S-so, speaking of which," he continued, "you're probably, uh, hungry right now, so wanna just… walk through these d-doors and have lunch with me?"

Yes, Ahri's intuition was spot-on. He was just consumed by his task, much as she must single-mindedly progress toward becoming human. Though she probably wasn't quite as annoying and naive as the boy, technically being almost a thousand years old. She declined the offer to lunch curtly and walked through the large double doors into the Institute's main League complex, though not without taking a map with her first.

The kid said she had to eat. Even if the enchantment had just been cast on her, it would not be a bad idea to at least see what food actually felt like beyond the superficial chewing and swallowing motions. It was, at least, an altogether human task, and she did miss tearing through meat like she did as a fox. As such, Ahri walked down the straight path to the dining building.

At some point, the path branched into two, the center of the branches taken up by a small plaza adorned with a small decorative garden and a fountain in the center. It was relaxing enough, and Ahri was quite exhausted, so she sat on a bench near the fountain and closed her eyes, perking her ears for the slightest of the fountain's murmuring.

Along with the murmuring, the faint noise of a plucked string instrument carried itself to Ahri's ears. It was soothing, and yet something else laid beneath the surface of the music's tranquility. Her curiosity piqued, Ahri followed the sound within her mind's eye, her keen sense of hearing revealing that the left fork led to the noise. She rose from the bench, a bit slowly from her fatigue, and headed toward the calming music.

Behind a wall of bushes, a woman whose outward appearance matched Ahri's in age carefully crafted her aria. The notes flowed from her fingertips outward, bolstered by the fine craftsmanship of her _guzheng_-like instrument, and tickled the gumiho's ears with their outward calm and their underlying mystery. The more Ahri listened, the more she could pick up on just what it was that the musician's heart was crying out with, and she soon realized that the woman felt alone and incomplete.

Empathy welled up within Ahri's chest and a sharp but soft pain etched itself into her heart. Sadness, yes, this was sadness, and she knew that the feeling was all her own, not just drawn out by the music. She bit back tears until she could no longer do so, and crumpled to the floor, softly sobbing. How long had it been since she decided to become human? How many times had she failed to show mercy to her victims and to make any sort of progress in her quest? It was futile, and her enrollment into the League was just an attempt to shake off the futility that would haunt her forever.

The music quieted for a moment, then stopped. Ahri's ears began to faintly ring, until a muddled voice could be heard in the ringing. _Who is crying? Who has my art made suffer?_ The woman who was fingering her instrument rose from her seated position and turned to look at the floored Ahri. She gazed sadly, and the ringing in Ahri's grew louder still, with the same voice proclaiming: _I wish I could tell her sorry. I didn't mean to do it again. Never would I harm someone with my song, but-_

"No, it's okay," Ahri said, not quite sure who she was speaking to. "That song was beautiful. I just sort of… It reminded me of some things. The fault's all with me."

The ringing, however quiet already, completely silenced itself, and the woman gazing at Ahri stared, a bit shocked, before hurrying away with her instrument floating along beside her. If Ahri looked hard, she could see a bit of a smile and excitement on the retreating figure's face.

But damned she'd be if Ahri wasn't hungry.

"To a proper meal I go, then," she said quietly to herself, her voice still rasped from crying.


End file.
